If you’ve been around these parts long enough you’ll know that I’m truly in love with breakfast. And truth be told, I love it even more when I’m eating for other meals. Like those gratin potatoes with spinach, kale, and a runny poached egg? That was my lunch one day over holiday break. It was spectacular. Well this shrimp and grits dish rates right up there.

Lord knows I’m not from the South but my great pal Josie sure is and she knows her grits. Creamy, cheesy, stick-to-your-ribs sort of good grits. Add some shrimp to a killer pan of grits and you’ve got a perfect pair. And speaking of Josie, she’s having herself a perfect pair this week…in the form of twin boys! Josie and Joey are adding 2 more to their family and I knew this shrimp and grits dish would be an amazing way to help celebrate a little surprise shower a few of us decided to have for her.

Josie loves breakfast just as much as I do and she’s all over shrimp and grits. Being the Yankee that I am, I think this meal really does Southern comfort food justice (especially since I used the stone-ground white cornmeal Josie brought me from Atlanta in October) and I know she would love it as much as Kyle and I did. Because you’ll bake the grits for a final 15 minutes, they aren’t quite as creamy as I would have liked for them to be but it’s a stellar recipe, nonetheless. The only thing that could possibly make this shrimp and grits any more awesome would be a poached egg. Surprised? I know Josie would agree.

Melt butter in a 12-inch oven safe skillet over medium heat. Add onions and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 minutes. Add the garlic and chile powder and stir for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Pour in the water and heavy cream and bring the liquid to a boil. Slowly whisk in the grits then reduce the heat to low. Cook the grits, stirring frequently, for 15 minutes until they are thick and creamy. Remove the skillet from the heat and quickly stir in 3/4 of the cheese, eggs, scallions, and black pepper. Nestle the shrimp under the grits and smooth out the grits over the shrimp once all have been added. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top of the grits.

It’s no surprise to me that when we tried this recipe for the first time about 6 months ago, we loved everything about it…well, except the noodles. I had been searching for probably a year and half for real lo mein noodles for this recipe and finally just bit the bullet and made the recipe with spaghetti. It just wasn’t right, people. Thin spaghetti may have worked better but I wasn’t going to chance it.

So when I was perusing Whole Foods with Josie, Courtney, and Annie back in February while stocking up to cook dinner that night, Annie found lo mein noodles for me. I had searched high and low (no pun intended) in my Whole Foods and local grocery stores to no avail. I snagged the package and now I wished I had grabbed a few extra because I still can’t find them here!

Noodles issue aside, this shrimp lo mein was a perfect departure from heavy and oftentimes greasy Chinese take out lo mein. The flavors perfectly mimic what we know take out lo mein to be but there’s just something about controlling all of the ingredients of a dish that make it so satisfying. We went with a vegetarian version, swapping out the original chicken broth and chicken breast for vegetable broth and shrimp, respectively, and I love the fact that the list of vegetables in the recipe is versatile enough to use up whatever you have hanging around in the fridge. After some minimal prep work, the whole recipe comes together rather quickly, so make sure you’ve got everything washed, chopped, and ready to go before you start. I saved the other half of the package of noodles for a “rainy day” which may come sooner rather than later because now I’m craving these noodles again!

Cook the lo mein noodles according to the package directions; drain and set aside. While the noodles cook, make the sauce: whisk the oyster sauce, soy sauce, vegetable broth and red pepper flakes together in a small bowl; set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add in the vegetables, each a few minutes apart, starting with the carrots, then the onions, mushrooms, and the peas. When you add the peas, add in the shrimp as well and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender-crisp and the shrimp is pink and cooked through (about 4-5 minutes). Stir in the garlic and sauté just until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Stir the sauce into the pan and then the cooked lo mein noodles. Toss the mixture well to coat everything. Drizzle with the sesame oil and toss once more. Serve immediately, garnishing with the scallions and crispy noodles.

With last week’s warmer temperatures here, I was absolutely craving a really great grilled meal. Unfortunately, we’re in between grills right now (though we just bought a beautiful new Weber over the weekend – thanks for the recommendations on the Facebook page everyone!) and even though the evening weather was perfect for grilling, I had indoor meals planned all week. Which is not to say that I was disappointed by the circumstances because this garlicky shrimp with buttered crumbs was one of the meals I had planned and it turned out to be a fantastic and relatively quick meal to pull together.

Sautéed shrimp, an ample amount of garlic, and a light sherry sauce topped with toasted buttered bread crumbs and set over some linguine is the perfect meal for a busy weeknight or even to serve to guests. The recipe calls for some French bread to be used to make the bread crumbs, which I had in the house, but you can certainly use panko bread crumbs instead. The only thing I did differently from the original recipe was that I thinned out the sauce a little with some chicken broth and extra lemon juice so that it would coat a small serving of pasta. Whether you serve it over pasta or with rice on the side, I’m sure you’ll love this shrimp dish as much as we did!

There have been a few times in the past couple of months where I considered canceling all of my food magazine subscriptions. The guilt I feel about these food magazines is sometimes enough to make me not want to renew each year. They sit in a neat stack on the shelf of my coffee table, oftentimes untouched for months, even if never opened for the first time. I wouldn’t say that I have an unhealthy relationship with these magazines but it could be a more mutually satisfying relationship…and by that I mean that I’m really the one who should be getting more than nothing out of magazines that sit untouched and unread.

So last week when I finally flipped through one of Bon Appétit’s early summer issues (yes, for the first time), I was stopped dead in my tracks by a photo of a sandwich. I turned around to my menu for the upcoming week, added it to the list, and then obsessed about this sandwich for the next 3 days. Now, I’m not one to eat-then-immediately-blog what I make but I couldn’t wait to share this recipe with you, even if I only made it last night. These shrimp po’ boys were amazing beyond my expectations. Paired with a homemade rémoulade sauce (made with homemade pickles, I might add) and coated in a spicy Cajun dry rub, the shrimp truly shine in this sandwich. The sandwich as a whole is full of heat, though not an overwhelming amount for a light-weight like me, and is perfectly well-balanced by the rémoulade and cool tomato, lettuce, and a couple of pickle spears on the side. The original recipe called for batter-dipped fried shrimp and while that sounded awesome, we overindulged a little this Labor Day weekend so I lightened up the shrimp by sautéeing them instead – my changes are below. We were both sad to see the last bites finished up but we’re already planning who we can make them for in the next few weeks – they must go on the menu again soon! And even though it took me until August to get to June’s issue, I couldn’t be happier with this recipe…maybe I’ll reconsider my impulse to not renew this year since my faith has been furtively renewed.

In a shallow pie plate or dish, whisk together the first 8 ingredients. Add the shrimp and coat all of the shrimp with the spice mix.

Heat oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, until the shrimp is pink and cooked through.

To assemble the sandwiches, spread a layer of the rémoulade sauce or mayonnaise on the bottom of each roll, top with hot shrimp, then lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and a sprinkle of hot pepper sauce, if using.

After posting 3 differentbarrecipes in the past week, it’s definitely time to lighten things up a little around here. These tacos and salsa are definitely a better indicators of how we’ve actually been eating recently and the meal such a great way to balance out some of the sweet stuff. These shrimp tacos are light, super quick, and mucho healthy. Shawnda actually chose them for her PPQ choice a few weeks ago but I wasn’t really “feeling” them back then. And I’m not sure why because I knew they would be awesome…which, of course, they were. I changed things up just a little, using ancho chile powder on the shrimp instead of cayenne and omitting the peppers, onions, and Worcestershire sauce. After an easy sauté, the shrimp are left with a hint of spice but combine perfectly with the cool mango salsa. Top the tacos with a little lime sour cream (a little lime zest and juice mixed with sour cream) and you’ve got yourself a great meal!

In case you’re wondering about WW PointsPlus (as some of you have asked about), each taco consisted of 3 shrimp on a regular 6″ flour tortilla with about 1 tsp of shredded cheddar (not including sour cream) and was 5 Pts – the mango salsa is free. Not too shabby! I actually had quite a bit of salsa left over after only using 1/2lb of shrimp so I made another batch of shrimp yesterday morning while I was running around getting ready for work (roasted them at 425 degrees F for 8 minutes) and ate just the shrimp (9 shrimp) and salsa as a 2 Pt lunch yesterday – score!!

To make the salsa: Combine the mango, jalapeno, onion, lime juice, salt, chili sauce, garlic, and cilantro in a medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days or until ready to serve.

To make the tacos: Rub the shrimp with chile powder and salt. In a large saute pan set over medium-high heat, heat oil and saute the shrimp 3 minutes, flipping halfway through, until they curl and turn pink. Remove the shrimp from the heat and serve the shrimp hot in warmed tortillas with mango salsa and cheese.

As we come to the end of Mardi Gras and Fat Tuesday approaches, I thought it would be fitting to post a round-up of a few New Orleans-inspired dishes I’ve made in the the past year. If you’re not familiar with the significance of Fat Tuesday, it is the day before Ash Wednesday (when Lent starts) and marks the end of the Mardi Gras celebration. The Lenten season is a time of periodic fasting (many Christians “give up” certain foods, items, or behaviors to signify fasting) and Fat Tuesday is the last big day of eating before the 40 days of Lent. So if you’re looking for some great dishes for Fat Tuesday…or for any other day…be sure to check out these recipes.

These meatless muffalettas are on top of our favorite sandwich list and we make them often. With a number of dominant flavors, they all mesh beautifully, and even if you’re not a fan of olives, I can pretty much guarantee that you’ll love this sandwich!

1. Mince garlic cloves in a food processor. Add capers; pulse to chop. Add olives, vinegar, and oregano; pulse to chop again. Turn into a medium bowl; stir in olive oil and celery. (Can be refrigerated in an airtight container for several weeks.)

2. When ready to make sandwiches, spread 2 tablespoons of the olive salad on the cut side of each half roll. Divide cheese evenly between bread. On the bottom half of each sandwich, arrange a portion of onion, artichoke hearts, and sun-dried tomatoes. Cap with sandwich top. Halve crosswise on the diagonal and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

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Chicken and shrimp jambalaya is a big favorite around here and I’ve got it on the menu for this week again. Shredded chicken and juicy shrimp are cooked with spicy rice and you can’t beat this easy weeknight meal.

Combine the onion, celery, bell pepper and garlic in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until chopped fine, about six 1-second pulses, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Be careful not to over-process.

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the pot, skin-side down, and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Using tongs, turn the chicken and cook until golden brown on the opposite side, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside. Lower the heat to medium and add the andouille. Cook, stirring often, until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer the sausage to a paper towel-lined plate using a slotted spoon, and set aside.

Lower the heat to medium-low and add the chopped vegetables to the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, about 4 minutes. Add the rice, salt, thyme and cayenne; cook, stirring constantly, until the rice is coated with the fat, about 1 minute. Add the diced tomatoes, reserved tomato juice, clam juice, chicken broth, bay leaves and cooked sausage to the pot. Stir to combine. Remove the skin from the chicken pieces and place the chicken on the rice so that the side the skin was just removed from is now facing down. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and let simmer for 15 minutes. Stir once, keeping the chicken in the same general position, and continue to simmer until the chicken is no longer pink inside, about 10 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to a clean plate or cutting board and set aside. Scatter the shrimp over the rice, cover, and continue to cook until the rice is fully tender and the shrimp are opaque and cooked through, about 5 minutes more.

While the shrimp are cooking, shred the chicken into thin strands. Once the shrimp are finished cooking, discard the bay leaves, stir in the chicken and parsley, and serve immediately.

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Cajun-seasoned homemade potato chips are a simple and satisfying side dish or snack and what’s amazing about this recipe is that you “fry” the chips in the microwave. Yep, a quick trip in the microwave actually yields a crispy potato chip!

1. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit the inside of your microwave.

2. Carefully slice1/3 of a potato into paper thin slices using a mandoline, vegetable peeler, or sharp knife. You don’t want to cut any more than this because any extra slices laying around waiting to be cooked will turn pink in color.

3. Completely coat the parchment paper with non-stick spray and place the potato slices in a single layer. Spray the potato slices with non stick spray and lightly sprinkle with salt and Cajun seasoning.

4. Turn off the rotating option on your microwave and cook for 4-5 minutes. Cooking times will vary based on the strength and power of your microwave. Some chips may turn very dark brown. Ideally you want them light and golden. Also in my microwave some of the chips on the outside layer didn’t cook as quick as the ones towards the middle, so you may need to remove the ones in the middle and cook the outer ones for an additional minute.

5. Repeat the process until you’ve used your entire potato.

Makes 2 servings.

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You can’t get a more traditional New Orleans food than a beignet. Fried dough covered with powdered sugar is found in many different cultures but there is something magical about beignets. These are apple-filled and come with a butter-rum caramel dipping sauce. Uh…yes please!

To make the sauce:Heat sugar in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring with a fork to heat sugar evenly, until it starts to melt, then stop stirring and cook, swirling skillet occasionally so sugar melts evenly, until it is dark amber. Stir in butter, water, rum, vinegar, and a pinch of salt (caramel will harden and steam vigorously) and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until caramel has dissolved. Add cream and bring to a boil, stirring, then remove from heat. Cool to warm.

To make the beignets:

1. Preheat oven to 250°F with rack in middle. Set a cooling rack in a large shallow baking pan.2. Heat 2 inches oil in a 5- to 6-quart heavy pot over medium-high heat to 375°F.

4. Put 1 1/4 cups flour in a large shallow bowl and make a well in center. Beat egg in a small bowl with a fork, then stir in cider and 1 tablespoon oil and pour into well. Stir with fork until a lumpy batter forms.

5. Working in batches of 3 or 4, dredge apple rings in remaining 1/2 cup flour, shaking off excess, then dip in batter to coat, letting excess drip off, and fry, gently turning over once with a slotted spoon, until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes total per batch. Transfer to rack and keep warm in oven. Return oil to 375°F between batches.

Just before serving, dust warm beignets with confectioners sugar. Stir sauce, then serve on the side.

Make 4-6 servings.

Cooks’ notes from Gourmet:

If you can’t find self-rising cake flour, you can substitute self-rising all-purpose. Use 1 cup in the batter and 1/2 cup for dredging. Increase cider to 1 cup and follow recipe as directed.

Sauce can be made 3 days ahead and chilled, covered. Warm before serving.

Beignets are best freshly made but can be fried 2 hours ahead and kept, loosely covered, at room temperature. Reheat beignets (they should not touch) on a rack set in a large shallow baking pan, uncovered, in a 325°F oven until hot, 15 to 20 minutes.

This is one meal I firmly believe every home cook should have in their repertoire…a meal that you’ve got in your back pocket, ready to pull out and make at any time. I would bet that if you’ve even got a halfway decently stocked pantry, you’ll have everything you need to make this recipe. Since penne alla vodka is usually the only dish I order at our favorite local Italian restaurant, I decided it was time to find a great recipe to add to my repertoire so that on the nights when I’m craving it, it’s only a few steps away from my table.

And since today is Valentine’s Day, I thought it would be a great meal to post, especially since it’s pink but more importantly, this is for those of you who haven’t decided on what to make yet or who are on the fence about going out to dinner. In my opinion, dinner in a restaurant on Valentine’s Day a waste of your hard-earned moula and I can guarantee that this meal will be better than what you’ll get in a restaurant tonight. This was by far, the best vodka sauce I’ve made at home, and every bit as excellent as at our favorite restaurant. Hit up the grocery store on the way home from work this afternoon if you don’t have what you need in the house already. Throw on a pot of boiling water, cut up a small onion and some garlic, measure out (or don’t measure if you’re feeling frisky) your vodka and some heavy cream, follow the quick recipe, maybe add a salad and some crusty bread and you’ve got this fantastic meal on the table in less than 30 minutes. Now that’s a weeknight meal I can appreciate…and it’s one that’s special enough for a holiday like this one or to serve to guests.

I threw some shrimp into the sauce before I added the heavy cream to let them cook through but you can add diced rotisserie or grilled chicken or even quickly sautéed scallops if you want to make the meal extra special. The meal itself is pretty versatile and if you don’t have or don’t want to use heavy cream, use half-n-half or milk. I forgot to buy basil this week so I used some fresh parsley instead. Use whatever kind of pasta you have on hand – I like rigatoni with this sauce but rotini, penne, ziti, etc. all work just as well. I feel like the red pepper flakes should be optional – if you like spice, add 1/4 – 1/2 tsp and if you don’t want the spice, I don’t think the dish will suffer without the heat. The recipe calls for a 280z can of whole tomatoes, half of which you puree, the other half of which you dice. However, it would just be easier to buy a 14oz can of pureed or crushed tomatoes and a 14oz can of diced tomatoes – why break out the food processor for such a simple meal? The recipe posted below is as originally written but feel free to make whatever changes you feel necessary to make it your own…and to make it one that you can truly pull out of your back pocket when you’re in a pinch for a great meal. Enjoy!

Puree half of the tomatoes in a food processor until smooth. Dice the remaining tomatoes into ½-inch pieces, discarding cores. Combine the pureed and diced tomatoes in a liquid measuring cup (you should have about 1⅔ cups). Add reserved tomato liquid to equal 2 cups. (I needed about an extra ½ cup of the tomato liquid – keep the extra liquid on the side in case you need to add it later.)

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are light golden around the edges, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and pepper flakes; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Stir in the tomatoes and the salt. Remove the pan from the heat and add the vodka. Return the pan to medium-high heat and simmer briskly until the alcohol flavor is cooked off, 8 to 10 minutes; stir frequently and lower the heat to medium if the simmering becomes too vigorous. (If the sauce becomes too thick too quickly, add some of the reserved tomato liquid.) Stir in the cream and cook until hot, about 1 minute. (Take care not to overheat the cream or the sauce will break apart.)

Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to a boil in a large stockpot over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon Kosher salt and the pasta. Cook until just shy of al dente, then drain the pasta. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss over medium heat until the pasta absorbs some of the sauce, 1 to 2 minutes, adding reserved pasta water if sauce is too thick. Stir in the basil and adjust the seasoning with salt. Divide among pasta bowls and serve immediately.

Let me start this post off with my excitement of what this Thursday will bring. It’s my Q&A day with Ina Garten!! I still need your help with a few questions to ask her – I’ll be sure to credit you in my write-up should I choose one of your questions. I know from your comments that a lot of you are big fans so tell me what you’d ask her if you had the chance to chat with her. I need to hear back from you in the comments of this post by 5pm EasternWednesday August 18th…so fire away!

And now for this week’s new Ina recipe from How Easy Is That?…

Weeknight meals don’t get any easier than this spaghetti with garlic and olive oil dish! The dish itself is one that I’ve been eating for most of my life which I talked about a few years ago, but the recipe is a new one for me. And when I came across this classic in How Easy Is That?, I knew it was one that would soon make an appearance for dinner. Ina doesn’t call for the roasted shrimp in the recipe but the spaghetti really needs some protein and since we’ve been roasting a lot of shrimp around here (more recipes soon), I decided to throw some in. My parents traditionally served aglio e olio, as we simply called it (and pronounced it as ahhlyuh-oy-yuh), with Italian sausages or pork chops but you could serve just about any type of protein such as chicken or clams.

We both really enjoyed this meal though I probably would have loved it more if it had been hot when I ate it. The life of a food blogger. For such simple ingredients, the flavors really stood out and I was happy to see how this recipe didn’t include any butter, as my parents’ traditional recipe does. You can bet we’ll be eating this again and I hope you’ll give it a try too!

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of salt and the pasta and cook according to the directions on the package. Set aside 1 1/2 cups of the pasta cooking water before you drain the pasta.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a pot large enough to hold the pasta, such as a 12-inch saute pan or a large, shallow pot. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until it just begins to turn golden on the edges – don’t overcook it! Add the red pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds more. Carefully add the reserved pasta-cooking water to the garlic and oil and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, add 1 teaspoon of salt and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the liquid is reduced by about a third.

Add the drained pasta to the garlic sauce and toss. Off the heat, add the parsley and Parmesan cheese and toss well. Allow the pasta to rest off the heat for 5 minutes for the sauce to be absorbed. Taste for seasoning and serve warm with extra Parmesan on the side.

If you haven’t picked up the June 2010 Bon Appétit yet, you are sorely missing out. Featured in this month’s magazine is the Ultimate Summer Menu Guide with more than 2,600 different mix-and-match menu combinations from 30 different dishes. 2,688 to be exact. That’s incredible! The first recipe I chose from the mouth-watering list of 30 was probably the most obvious: the cover recipe, Grilled Shrimp & Sausage Skewers with Smoky Paprika Glaze. Certainly a mouthful of a recipe name but seriously one of the best dishes I’ve made in a long, long time. This recipe lived up to everything I hoped it would be. The skewers were smoky, spicy and savory. And they were delicious. Better yet, the recipe was a piece of cake to put together and should you be planning for guests, the skewers can be assembled hours in advanced and chilled until you’re ready to grill them. Don’t ya just love that?!

Whisk oil, garlic, thyme, smoked paprika, Sherry wine vinegar, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper in medium bowl to blend for glaze. Transfer half of glaze to small bowl and reserve for serving.Alternately thread shrimp, sausage pieces, cherry tomatoes, and sections of onion wedges on each of 6 long metal skewers. Arrange skewers on large rimmed baking sheet. DO AHEAD: Can be made up to 6 hours ahead. Cover and chill skewers and bowls of glaze separately.

Coat grill rack with nonstick spray and prepare barbecue (medium high heat) or heat a grill pan over medium high heat. Brush skewers on both sides with glaze from 1 bowl. Grill until shrimp are opaque in center, turning and brushing occasionally with more glaze, 6 to 8 minutes.

Arrange skewers on platter. Serve with remaining bowl of glaze.

* Sometimes labeled Pimentón Dulce or Pimentón de La Vera Dulce; available at some supermarkets, at specialty foods stores, and from latienda.com.

Do yourselves a favor and don’t wait as long I did to make this risotto! Seriously, I put off making this May Barefoot Bloggers recipe for an entire month because I just wasn’t thrilled with the idea of risotto surrounded by a bunch of veggies but this recipe was such a pleasant surprise. I paired it with a highly modified version of the other BB recipe for the May, Grilled Herb Shrimp, and the shrimp really rounded out the meal. As all of Ina’s recipes do, the full risotto recipe makes a lot (6 meal servings rather than the 4 Ina suggests) but neither of us are complaining about having leftovers for lunch for the next couple of days. And even though the recipe name suggests that it’s a spring recipe, all of the ingredients are available year-round; they just happen to be less expensive this time of year. Really though like I said, don’t wait to make too long to make this – you’ll regret it like I did!

Heat the olive oil and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the leeks and fennel and saute for 5 to 7 minutes, until tender. Add the rice and stir for a minute to coat with the vegetables, oil, and butter. Add the white wine and simmer over low heat, stirring constantly, until most of the wine has been absorbed. Add the chicken stock or broth, 2 ladles at a time, stirring almost constantly and waiting for the stock to be absorbed before adding more. This process should take 25 to 30 minutes.

When the risotto has been cooking for 15 minutes, add the peas, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Continue cooking and adding stock/broth, stirring almost constantly, until the rice is tender but still firm.

When the risotto is done, turn off the heat and stir in the mascarpone plus the Parmesan cheese and chives. Set aside, off the heat, for a few minutes, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and serve hot with a sprinkling of chives and more Parmesan cheese.

Combine all the ingredients and allow them to marinate for 1 hour at room temperature or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Skewer the shrimp. I use 3 or 4 shrimp on a 12-inch skewer for dinner. Heat a grill with coals and brush the grill with oil to prevent the shrimp from sticking. Grill the shrimp for only 1 1/2 minutes on each side.

Some of you may be wondering what the heck I’m doing posting a clear-cut cold-weather meal almost halfway through April. Well, if you had some of the nasty weather that the Northeast endured during the final weeks of March and into the beginning of April, you know how much a warm meal on a raw and rainy night was appreciated. This jambalaya was the perfect meal for that night. And maybe what was best about it (aside from it’s deliciousness of course) was that it was an easy meal to put together on a weeknight.

Let’s just say that regardless of the level of familiarity you may have with jambalaya, you’re going to love this dish. I had been looking for a great jambalaya recipe for close to 3 years and since I had never made it before and had only eaten it a couple of times as a kid, I wanted to make sure I chose the perfect one. This was it, thanks to Annie and her love of Cook’s Illustrated. Kyle and I both adored this meal and I’m already looking forward to next fall when the weather will be calling for it again!

Combine the onion, celery, bell pepper and garlic in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until chopped fine, about six 1-second pulses, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Be careful not to over-process.

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the pot, skin-side down, and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Using tongs, turn the chicken and cook until golden brown on the opposite side, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside. Lower the heat to medium and add the andouille. Cook, stirring often, until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer the sausage to a paper towel-lined plate using a slotted spoon, and set aside.

Lower the heat to medium-low and add the chopped vegetables to the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, about 4 minutes. Add the rice, salt, thyme and cayenne; cook, stirring constantly, until the rice is coated with the fat, about 1 minute. Add the diced tomatoes, reserved tomato juice, clam juice, chicken broth, bay leaves and cooked sausage to the pot. Stir to combine. Remove the skin from the chicken pieces and place the chicken on the rice so that the side the skin was just removed from is now facing down. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and let simmer for 15 minutes. Stir once, keeping the chicken in the same general position, and continue to simmer until the chicken is no longer pink inside, about 10 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to a clean plate or cutting board and set aside. Scatter the shrimp over the rice, cover, and continue to cook until the rice is fully tender and the shrimp are opaque and cooked through, about 5 minutes more.

While the shrimp are cooking, shred the chicken into thin strands. Once the shrimp are finished cooking, discard the bay leaves, stir in the chicken and parsley, and serve immediately.

Being from coastal Long Island, NY, I love me some seafood soup. In all forms…chowder, stew, and of course bisque (be still my heart!). So when this pick came up for Barefoot Bloggers this month, I was really really excited…though a wee bit nervous at the same time because the last time I tried to make a seafood soup at home (Manhattan clam chowder), the pot ended up outside in the snow along with the soup. But I trust Ina. How could I not after all the amazing things I’ve made since I first printed off one of her recipes from FoodNetwork 6 years ago? And she claims that this recipe doesn’t involve a whole bunch of steps which is always a good thing in my book.

The bisque turned out just as I hoped it would. It was awesome and certainly rivals the bisque from any of the better seafood restaurants I’ve been to (including one I ate at recently that claims their bisque is famous). It was the perfect marriage of shrimp flavor with a “I’m hear just in the background” sherry and cognac blend and I definitely knew I was eating a seafood-based soup without the seafood flavor totally overwhelming the soup. I realize that bisques can be quite on the heavy side with a whole bunch of heavy cream but this one calls for half-n-half and I ended up using half skim milk/half half-n-half (get that?) in order to lighten it up a bit. I probably could have used more skim milk and less half-n-half because the recipe calls for a good amount of roux which in and of itself is a wonderful thickener. I was slightly skeptical about the addition of cayenne pepper but don’t skip it! It lends just enough heat without overpowering the flavor of bisque and is a really nice flavor complement.

I thought for a few days about what to serve alongside this soup and never really came up with any great ideas. Crusty bread was probably the best one that I had but I never made it to the store on the day I made the soup. As it turns out though, this soup is hearty enough to stand on it’s own without any side dish. The chunks of shrimp lend to the heartiness of it…and the half-n-half doesn’t really hurt too much either. If you needed it, crusty bread, soft yeast rolls, or a side salad would do fine on the side. You could even start a nice steak dinner off with this soup but keep it to cup servings so as to not fill up your guests on soup.

Many many thanks to Jennifer of Our Blessed Home for choosing this fantastic recipe!!

Place the shrimp shells and seafood stock in a saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes. Strain and reserve the stock. Add enough water to make 3 3/4 cups.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the leeks and cook them for 10 minutes over medium-low heat, or until the leeks are tender but not browned. Add the garlic and cook 1 more minute. Add the cayenne pepper and shrimp and cook over medium to low heat for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the Cognac and cook for 1 minute, then the sherry and cook for 3 minutes longer. Transfer the shrimp and leeks to a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until coarsely pureed.

In the same pot, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook over medium-low heat for 1 minute, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add the half-and-half and cook, stirring with a whisk, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the pureed shrimp, the stock, tomato paste, salt, and pepper and heat gently until hot but not boiling. Season, to taste, and serve hot.

Up until about 3 months ago, I wasn’t able to watch any Bobby Flay show on FoodNetwork with Kyle in the room. He couldn’t stand Bobby, saying that he was way too full of himself. Well, duh. But I’ve always thought that this personality trait was what made Bobby so good at what he does. And because of this pull and push about this FN celeb, I never really got around to making any of Bobby’s recipes until we came across a recipe for sausage-stuffed portobello mushrooms back in March. We loved the recipe but I never blogged about it because my photos were horrific – you can pop over to Annie’s blog for the recipe and some really pretty photos though. And after testing this one out, we were both sold on Bobby’s abilities. After all that time. But I digress.

So when perusing the cookbook section of my local bookstore last month, I picked up Bobby’s Grill It! cookbook and after flipping through for a few minutes, I was sold. This recipe here is the first one we’ve tried from the book and we were very, very pleased with the results. And you can thank Kyle for choosing it (go figure). It is a wee bit time-consuming of a recipe and I requested that Kyle help me with the prep the next time we make it but the salad was certainly worth every bit of my time; it was FABULOUS!!! I do recommend cutting down the spice rub for the shrimp by half because it was very strong but I wouldn’t change a single thing about the rest of the recipe. It’s a salad full of beans, tomatoes, onions, grilled fingerling potatoes (yum!!!) and topped with grilled shrimp (though traditionally topped with tuna) and a delicious vinaigrette. And mom, if you’re reading this, I ate (and loved!) the green beans!! Only you would be so proud!! So if you’re looking for an impressive main course salad to serve to guests this summer, you must give this one a try!!

Bring a medium pot of salted cold water to a boil. Add the yellow and green beans and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until just crisp-tender. Drain and immediately plunge into the ice water to stop the cooking. Let sit in the ice water for a few minutes, and then drain well.

Meanwhile, put the potatoes in a medium saucepan, cover with salted cold water, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the potatoes are almost cooked through (a knife or skewer inserted into the center should meet just a little resistance), 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well and let cool slightly.

Heat your grill to high.

Once cool enough to handle, slice the potatoes lengthwise, brush with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Place on the grill, cut side down, and cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn over and grill until just cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Keep the grill on.

Combine the cooked beans, grilled potatoes, tomatoes, onion, basil and parsley in a large bowl. Ad the vinaigrette and gently toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and let sit at room temperature while you prepare the shrimp.

To make the spice rub, combine the fennel, mustard and coriander with the salt and pepper in a bowl.

Put the shrimp in a large bowl and toss with the spice rub until evenly coated. Add the 1/4 cup olive oil and toss to coat. Place the shrimp on the grates of the grill in an even layer and grill until golden brown and slightly charred, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Turn the shrimp over and continue grilling until just cooked through, 45 seconds to 1 minute longer.

Arrange the salad on 4 large plates and top with the shrimp.

For the Niçoise Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup wine vinegar

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon honey

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon anchovy paste (don’t skip this!!)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, honey, garlic and anchovy paste and season with salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil.

Carb-free tacos, anyway. I’ve been in love with fish tacos since first trying them while I in LA for the first time a couple of months ago. Let’s just say that I’m harboring a not-so-secret love affair with them and have been testing them out wherever I go. So naturally, when I came across this recipe on the Foodie Bride’s blog, I had to try them. I wasted no time and picked up the ingredients I needed the first weekend after the recipe was posted.

And holy freaking moly. This was seriously one of the best recipes I’ve tried in AGES. The slaw was perfectly limey with just a hint of tequila and the grilled shrimp was quite literally finger-licking good. I made my own marinade (recipe below) then grilled the shrimp for a couple of minutes on each side. You can’t go wrong with this marinade – it’s fantastic!! I served the shrimp directly over the slaw without the tortilla. If you’re thinking “Wait, shrimp tacos without the tortilla? Not happening…” well, the slaw stands up on it’s own and doesn’t need anything else helping it to be better than it already is. So I ate the slaw more like a salad sans avocado, chipotle mayo, and tortilla. And it was goooood.

To make the slaw: Place cabbage and cilantro in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the oils, lime and orange juices, lime zest, tequila, and Tobasco. Pour over cabbage and toss to coat completely. Season with salt and pepper. Serve cold.

To make the marinade and shrimp: In a large zipper bag, combine first 4 ingredients. Add a few sprinkles each of the spices, salt and pepper. Mix well to incorporate the honey into the oil and lime juice. Add the shrimp and toss well to coat. Allow shrimp to marinate 1 hour in the refrigerator.

Allow the shrimp to come to room temperature before grilling to avoid the shrimp from shrinking drastically on the grill. Over a hot grill, grill the shrimp for 1 ½ to 2 minutes on the first side then flip and grill for another 30 seconds. Remove from grill and serve hot over the cool margarita slaw.